


Tropical Blend

by Quietshade



Category: Marvel (Movies), The Avengers (2012), The Avengers - All Fandoms
Genre: Angst, First Kiss, Fluff, Ice Cream, M/M, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-03-25
Updated: 2012-03-25
Packaged: 2017-11-02 13:11:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/369330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quietshade/pseuds/Quietshade
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The avengers go on a trip to the beach and Tony reconsiders his love for certain things.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tropical Blend

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ostrava](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ostrava/gifts).



> For doomsyphony who asked me to write the avengers in the beach. =)
> 
> [Edited: 9/25/2016]

He wasn’t sure how the conversation started.

All he knew was that they were coming back from a mission. Somewhere along the trip someone mentioned the word beach, and that had started a full domino effect. The team believed that, given the fact that Thor had never seen a beach before, and that the last time Steve went to one was eighty years ago, they needed to do a trip to the beach as soon as possible. By that they apparently meant immediately. The moment he'd gotten himself out of the suit, Thor appeared out of nowhere and dragged him to the Quinjet, despite his protests and attempts to escape.

When they got there everyone was already waiting and Thor dropped him on the seat at Steve’s side.  He glared at them as they prepared to launch and commented about his busy schedule and potentially dangerous assistant, to which Natasha replied that Pepper had cleared him for the day. Then he objected on his obvious lack of luggage or any kind of preparation, to which Clint kindly answered by throwing him a bag with what seemed to contain all he would need for the trip.

He grunted and sulked, not mentioning their apparent invasion to his property and privacy. Steve being Steve apologized on their behalf. He tried to cheer him up by starting random conversations that went from various topics such as the last mission, his plans for the weekend, the engineer’s armor performance and in a strange development, Bruce’s sex life. Tony had to admit that the latest was the best conversation of the trip. He enjoyed a little too much Steve’s flushed face and his unsuccessful attempts to change the subject.

They ended up in a beach somewhere in the Caribbean, because apparently going to a beach in your own country was too boring when you owned a Quinjet. Or so Clint protested. Steve had been reluctant as to use the Quinjet for those purposes but Thor’s enthusiasm and Clint’s happy chant outdid the captain’s efforts to voice his displease. They landed in a plain not so far away from the beach.

The thing was that there was a time when Tony used to love the Caribbean beaches. He had loved the warm and humid wind on his face, the ready to accompany him ladies that paraded in clothes that left little to the imagination, the bright sun that burned his skin, the strikingly blue sky, and most of all he loved the easily accessible and strong alcohol. Now, he wasn’t as much in love with the previously delightful beaches.

Becoming Iron man had changed him in many ways. If anyone asked him he would tell that he had in fact died in that cave in Afghanistan. He no longer enjoyed or searched for the lewdly company of the pretty ladies and occasional handsome males. Nor did he wanted to taste the best aged rum and whiskey he could find. In reality all the place reminisced him of was the shame his old self brought on him. It reminded him how much he now loathed the man he had once been and it all left a vile feeling in his guts.

The other avengers didn't notice their teammate’s inner turmoil. Clint ran past him smiling broadly while carrying his surfboard. Thor followed him with the same enthusiasm as he dared him on a race. The rest of the avengers weren’t as eager as them. Natasha made her way to a spot on the sand and installed herself there ready to take a sun bath. She gladly ignore them for the rest of the afternoon. Bruce, on the other hand, muttered something about insects and radiation before disappearing without another word. Steve was the last to leave Tony’s side. He looked split between accompanying Clint and Thor to the water or remaining behind to explore the place, after all it was his first time in the that part of the planet.

In the end the engineer urged the soldier to follow the god and the archer, assuring him that they would have time to explore later. The good thing about the beach was that none of the team members were hard to look at, meaning that he was more than happy to appreciate the guys physic and Natasha’s curves. He smiled to himself and settled under a palm with his tablet PC. He went over some upgrades for the armor, looking up from time to time to admire the view, giving special attention to Steve’s muscular abs.

Sometime later Natasha grew bored and followed the guys into the water. They played volleyball Steve and Clint vs. Natasha and Thor. The game was well matched and they seemed to be enjoying themselves. Well, at least until Thor, in a very enthusiastic manner, had hit Clint on the face with the ball. After that, no one but the god had wanted to continue the game. It was well known that the blond deity often forgot the extent of his strength. It was pitiful that Clint had to be reminded in such a way.

Tony smiled at his companions as they argued over something he couldn’t hear. He rested his head against the palm’s trunk, letting his mind wander to other places and other matters. He was just beginning to doze off, a week of little to none sleep finally catching up, when he felt someone approach him.

“Tony.” He cracked one eye open and saw Steve looking curiously at him. He smiled and patted the spot beside him signaling the blond to sit. “Why don’t you come to the water with us?”

He shrugged. “I don’t feel like it.”  He resisted the urge to run a hand over his Arc Reactor, knowing that the soldier would pick up on his thoughts.

Steve sat beside the engineer and hugged his knees on his chest, resting his chin on them. They remained silent for a while. Tony wasn't sure of the captain’s reasons to accompany him but he didn’t risk asking. He didn’t want the man to leave, nor did he want to be asked to accompany them to the water.

It was after a moment that he noticed that Steve was fidgeting looking rather embarrassed.

“Are you alright, Cap?” The soldier looked startled for a moment. He blushed from head to toe in an intense shade of red.

“D-don’t you think the dames’ swimsuits are a little too… revealing?” he blinked at his friend. He looked at the surroundings, taking in the ladies in bikinis, before bursting out in laughter. “He-hey! Stop laughing.”

He tried to stop. He really tried, but Steve’s frown and cute blush didn’t help him at all. He took a moment to calm himself and breathed deeply to calm his laughter.  “Don’t worry, Cap. They won’t be offended if you look at them.”

Steve scowled at him. “That’s not my point.”

He patted his companion’s shoulder. “I know, I know. I’m just saying that what they wear is their own problem. Don’t strain yourself with things you have no power over.” The blond didn’t look convinced. He didn’t get the chance to argue as Clint shouted for him to join them in another game.

Steve glanced at him as if asking for permission. That which made Tony arch his eyebrows curiously, but he nodded nonetheless. When he was left alone he looked down at his tablet pc, not really in the mood to continue working on the armor or anything else. He sighed in defeat and stood from his spot deciding to imitate Bruce. He shook the sand off his shorts. He checked that the arc reactor wasn’t visible through the fabric of his t-shirt before starting to walk toward the shore.

He eyed the avengers for a while, none of them noticing the engineer as he walked away from them. He set his mind on finding Bruce. He started walking around the beach in search of the scientific without success. He tried really hard to ignore the occasional lustful glances some women send him and kept his attention away from the stores that had so many varieties of alcohol on display.

In the end his hands were twitching to grab a bottle. He was going over all the reasons why surrendering to his low needs was a bad idea. Most of them were based on the fact that he would either disappoint Steve, Pepper or Rhodey. They didn’t deserved to add up another problem in their already full list. Tony was used to disappointing himself, it was a fact that he had come to accept since a long time ago. What he wasn’t comfortable with was having those few selected people that he called friends to be disappointed of him. It was like going over his father’s speech of why he wasn’t a suitable son and human being.

He managed to return to his teammates without affording any alcohol or succumbing to his recently ignored libido. It did proved to be a hard task, which left him more exhausted than he was willing to admit.

Steve smiled and waved at him as he approached the shore. On the background Clint grinned and neared Thor to whisper something to the god. He waved back to the soldier. Tony smiled when he saw him taking instructions from Natasha on how to properly sit on the surfboard. He was too distracted by Steve constant attempts and fails to keep on the board to notice the archer and the god slowly approaching him from his side.

He felt two pairs of hands grabbing him by both arms. He was lifted from the ground, his eyes growing comically wide as a rush of panic crawled in him.

“W-what are you doing guys?” He asked in horror, looking from side to side, to Clint and Thor.

Clint gave him a sly grin that made him feel completely uneasy. “Time to see if your ego is big enough to make you float.” He trashed in midair, swinging his legs back and forward, trying desperately to free himself from the deadly grip his companions had on him.

“Let me go you assholes. I’ll kick your asses when you put me down.” It didn’t occur him that threatening them wasn’t the best course of action. It was the best he could do to stop himself from pleading. Clint grinned more openly and started swinging him, ready to drop him in the water. He lost it at that moment. “Stop it!”

The clearly distressed shout startled everyone on the vicinity. He didn’t care about it. He grabbed Thor’s arm for the life of it and burrowed his face in the crock of the god’s neck, trying really hard to stop trembling. Everything went silent and still. He didn’t dare to look up from his companion’s shoulder to see everyone’s reaction to his panic attack. Thor tried to pry him away, but he tightened his hold as if his life depended of it. Until he felt a warm and gentle hand settle on his lower back. He was passed from Thor’s arm to a pair of equally build but much warmer arms.

He didn’t have to look up to know it was Steve holding him now.

It wasn’t long before the blonde settled him on the sand. A hand on his chin made him look up. He managed to look at Steve’s eyes for a full two seconds before his gaze fell down on the floor in embarrassment. The blond must have taken in his distress as he didn’t ask what Tony was sure everyone wanted to ask. Instead he put a towel around the engineer shoulders. He noticed for the first time that his t-shirt was damp and the light from the arc reactor was visible. He leaned a little into his companion and Steve put a hand on base of his neck as he played with the hair on his nape.

He wasn’t sure how long they remained there but it was long enough for the children to stop staring curiously at him. He sighed and tried to bury himself as much as he could under the big towel. He knew someone would ask what had happened but he wanted to delay that for as long as he could manage. He was almost about to fall asleep but, like last time, the soldier woke him. This time by moving a little away from him.

He tensed when Steve looked down at him and waited for the inevitable question. “Hey do you want to get some ice-cream?” He blinked at Steve, obviously that wasn’t the question he had been waiting for.

“I-Yes?” Steve chuckled and offered his hand to help him up. He tugged the engineer wrist and led him toward the ice-cream parlor.

He was leaning from side to side nervously, as they waited for their turn. Steve wasn’t even looking at him. He was apparently thinking about which flavor to pick. He breathed in deeply and tugged the soldier’s wrist. He wasn’t exactly looking forward to telling anyone about his torture in Afghanistan. Or how he wasn’t fond of being tossed into the water ever since he was a toddler and someone, who he suspected had been his father, had pushed him into their giant pool. Or how he wasn’t comfortable with people looking at the arc reactor. Or in general, how screwed up he was. But there wasn’t point in prolonging the inevitable.

“Look, I’m sorry I di-” Steve interrupted him mid-sentence.

“We don’t have to talk about it now. We are here to enjoy the trip.” The blond smiled down at him and petted his hair.

He stood frozen for a few seconds. His breath caught in his lugs as he looked at those strikingly blue eyes, which not even the sky could put to shame. He frowned and muttered that he wasn’t a kid, trying to hide the blush on his cheeks. When it was finally their turn Steve picked plain vanilla flavor and Tony mixed all the tropical exotic flavors in the menu. They walked a little toward a palm and settled under its shadow.

He licked his ice-cream and grinned mischievously at Steve. “Why Steve, I thought you were the curious type.” Steve shrugged at his accusation and smiled shyly.

“I’m really fond of vanilla ice-cream.” Tony tried not to swoon at the man's honest face. He couldn’t help but to want to give the man the moon when he used that face.

“Uh, here you can try mine.” Tony extended his cone toward the blond. Steve smiled thankfully to him, leaning down to lick the ice-cream. The engineer fixed his gaze on his companion as his pink tongue slipped out of his mouth and licked the ice-cream. He felt a wave of heat crawling within him. He was sure he was blushing down to his neck.

He watched carefully as the soldier licked the ice-cream from his lips and hummed happily “Hmm, it’s good but I still prefer vanilla…” Suddenly his eyes lighted as if he had just gotten a brilliant idea. “Maybe this way...” He looked at both sides quickly before leaning down to press a kiss into the engineer’s open mouth. His tongue moistened the engineer’s lips and explored the inside of his mouth.

Tony was too shocked to even react. Before he could come out of his shock the soldier had already stepped back. There was a shy smile on Steve's lips and a furious blush covered his whole body.

“You are right,” he said with embarrassment. “maybe I should try new flavors.”

The soldier then turned around and hurried back to where the rest of the team was waiting. Tony stared at the man’s retreating back for a moment with astonishment. Someone chuckled at his side. His head snapped to his side to find Bruce smiling knowingly at him.

“S-shut up.” he spluttered pointing towards the scientific.He made a dash for the blond. “Steveeee, wait! That’s not fair.”

He didn’t want to sound too optimist but maybe, just maybe. He would be able to find a new sense to the beautiful Caribbean coasts. 


End file.
